Five months is a long, long time to be off-line. The computer crashed just before Christmas. Not a good time, financially, to buy a new one. It isn't that the old one totally died, but it showed signs of dying a slow and painful death. So, it was unplugged and sent to the inner sanctum of the storage room.
I cancelled the internet (and phone - decided to only use the cell) and went into withdrawal. It was more difficult than I imagined. Since I had worked for a dot com for many years and made my living on the internet, it seemed unnatural not to be connected to those in cyberspace.
This is a small living space. An area dedicated to office space took up valuable real estate when not used daily. So, furniture was moved around. A small table and two chairs replaced the desk. Now it became a place to have morning coffee while watching life unfold outside the window and a comfortable place to play cards in the evening.
I replaced the big round dining room table and chairs for a smaller set, and replaced my living room set for a love seat and a rocker - lounge chair (which I hate). The traffic flow improved, but I missed being on-line.
Finally, in April I called Time Warner and requested that the phone and internet be reinstalled. They came yesterday. I dusted off the old computer just to see how bad it really was. It's semi retirement didn't resolve the old problems, but it did allow me email access and the ability to get to this site. I'm back online, but not fully functional. hmmmmm, I wonder if that is a metaphore for my personal life?
What have I done to keep busy for five months? I spent a lot of time in the kitchen. There are loads of new recipes to share with the readers and I'll begin posting them soon. One, in particular, is perfect for those of us who are cooking for one or two. It isn't just one recipe but a series of recipes when cooking a half pork loin. The first is straight forward and extremely simple.
Roasted Pork Loin
Pre-heat oven to 350.
1 pork loin
Montreal steak seasoning.
Place the pork loin, fat side up, in a roasting pan. Rub the loin with the steak seasoning.
Insert a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the loin.
Place pan in oven - do not cover. Calculate cooking time for 15 minutes per pound or until the meat thermometer reaches 160 degrees. Remove pan from oven and let meat stand for about 10 minutes before cutting.
The key is not to add anything to the meat....no liquid...no additional veggies...nothing. Just let the oven do the work. The roast is tender, flavorful, and offers a myriad of opportunities for other meals.
Last night we had the pork roast with roasted red potatoes; broccoli slaw; applesauce; and steamed carrots.
I sliced half the loin into chops and will use them for dinner later in the week. I froze the other half to be used later in the month.
Can't be easier.
Bea, very happy to see your
Bea, very happy to see your return! I already can tell you how good that pork loin is as I have made it that way many times. I can't wait for your future culinary offerings.
Bea, I can live without TV
Bea,
I can live without TV and most times the phone. Even before DSL i couldnt go more then two days without being online. I have gone so far as to rebuild several computers and buy parts to make them work becoz it costs too much to get them fixed. I am currently buying and selling quality low cost computers while they last. I also do repairs and software installations when I can. I encourage u to see my ad in the buy/sell/trade section or just email me gdavd@bluefrog.com and I might be able to help you with old computer issues. It is a hobby for me but I love doing it.
I'm getting one of them from
I'm getting one of them from Gabor today! Really looking forward to it. I'd love to have you look at my old one too and do some "cleaning up" on it. My kids have downloaded so much crap there is no telling what kind of spywear, viruses, etc. are on there. I'm sure it could use a good cleaning inside too. Is that something that you would be able to do Gabor?
Its what I love doing. It
Its what I love doing. It must have original software that goes with it for OS and anything that needs to be reinstalled. I just tried to fix a computer and the OS disc was not for this computer. It was messed up from his kids downloading so much stuff and it has a worm : win.32.netsky which he got from installing free spyware program. When u get ur new computer set up just drop me an email about your other computer. I check them first then tell ya whats wrong and what I can do or cant. I charge a small fee only when I fix problems.
"Posted by Timothy Paine
"Posted by Timothy Paine about 51 minutes ago
Bea, very happy to see your return! I already can tell you how good that pork loin is as I have made it that way many times. I can't wait for your future culinary offerings."
Thanks, Tim. Good to be back. I'm becoming a real skinflint when it comes to groceries. I can't believe that a shopping trip to Aldi's for three weeks worth of food came to just over $93. Several months ago, the same grocery list would have been no higher than $75.
So, desparation being the mother of invention and creativity, I have put together a notebook of tried and true recipes that are good at disguising the original meal. I'm squeezing every item in the pantry to it's fullest capacity.
"reply Posted by Gabor Deutsch about 27 minutes ago
Bea,
I can live without TV and most times the phone. Even before DSL i couldnt go more then two days without being online"
It is amazing how addicting the internet can be. Television is a different story. I have some favorites that keep my interest but not many. As long as BRAVO continues to air The West Wing for two hours each morning, I'm satisfied.
Check your email...and thanks for the post.
Bea - I could sure use your
Bea - I could sure use your help. I need to get my grocery bill down. Is your notebook of recipes going to be for sale or is it just for your personal use. It would be great if you could do a column with money saving recipes. Healthy would be a nice addition too. That's the problem. I could feed my kids crap for a lot less than the healthy food that I try to buy. You can get a loaf of cheap white bread for 1/2 the cost of a good whole grain bread (doctor's orders) and my kids would be fine with hotdogs and macaroni and cheese but way too much fat and too little nutrition there.
Sounds yummy Bea.
Sounds yummy Bea.
"Posted by Beth Kinsley about
"Posted by Beth Kinsley about 1 hour ago
Bea - I could sure use your help. I need to get my grocery bill down. Is your notebook of recipes going to be for sale or is it just for your personal use. It would be great if you could do a column with money saving recipes. Healthy would be a nice addition too. "
I'm not an expert but I love sharing tips and recipes. I'll be adding more soon.
The notebook is for my personal reference. A guide to remind me about meals that were successful; what I will need from the store when I make them again and how I tweaked the recipe to adjust to our tastes.
I have one rule - the meal plan has to multi task without making any one meal look like a leftover.
It becomes a game!
I do try to use fresh fruits and vegetables when possible. I purchase whole wheat bread from Aldi's - they also have a great multi grain bread.
Fortunately, for us, home grown produce will be available soon.
Beth.We the boys and i rarely
Beth.We the boys and i rarely waste food.Like say you make chicken a whole chicken, turkey,ham>When we're done i'm makin soup.It makes 2 more meals.If i make chili.I make a giant batch.Freeze it.If we have leftover meat i freeze it.I use it for stir fry.Fresh fruit and vegatables are expensive.So we try to buy ones in season that are less expensive.Hopefully we will have our own fresh tomatoes and peppers by july or august.
I'm trying Dan. I think we
I'm trying Dan. I think we have become far to used to convenience foods. It is much easier to throw in a frozen pizza which is not only very unhealthy, but quite expensive for the amount of food you actually get. My mother NEVER bought frozen dinners. Everything was pretty much made from scratch and nothing went to waste. Of course she had to feed a family of 10 on a tight budget.
O no not frozen pizza.I
O no not frozen pizza.I havn't found one i like yet.Most are like cardboard.I do buy frozen dinners.So some days when we have something to do it's quick and easy.I think most have soy beans in the meat.Ever see what they feed our kids at school?In the summer they thin down.And we eat 3 meals a day in the summer.My son jimmy hates veggies.I can't get him to eat them.I like the idea richard simmons has.More exercise at school..dan
I used to love Tony's Pizza
I used to love Tony's Pizza (frozen) but I bought some a few weeks ago and, even though the box was the same size, the pizzas were about 1/2 the size they used to be and there was less cheese, pepperoni, etc. That's what I get for trying to take a shortcut.
isnt it odd how the prices go
isnt it odd how the prices go up.And what your getting the amount goes down.Even a jar of pickles.I'm not liking it.I think i'd rather pay a little more an get the right amount of a product.Wouldn't you?
Agreed. My daughter tried to
Agreed. My daughter tried to get me to buy pickles on Sunday. There is no way I'm paying over $3 for a jar of cucumbers! My sister has a huge garden and does tons of freezing and canning. She even makes her own jellies, jams and applesauce. Thankfully she is VERY generous and we never leave there without something good.